Firebreak Art
by Lindsey Copelin
Lindsey Copelin
My adventure in Alaska began ten years ago waiting tables in Denali. The following year I moved into a tiny dry cabin in Fairbanks with my husband.. Feeding the fire one winter night I peeled bark from a length of firewood. I continued peeling the bark apart until I had a nice, clean sheet of paper. Add some scissors, sandpaper and dye and my birch bark jewelry designs were born. Today my birch jewelry and artwork have evolved to include collage, watercolor on wood-burning and other (indescribable) techniques.
This all started on a whim but the level of discovery I have enjoyed year after year keeps me quite entertained with the material. From manipulating it beyond recognition to following the guidance of natural shades, textures and limitations the bark is both material and inspiration.
For me, curiosity leads to creativity. I enjoy wandering tree to tree and stump to log looking under and through things and tearing them apart. This always leads to questions which I am happy to answer to myself from imagination as I fill my bag with cool things to mess with at home. I rarely do anything measured or in a timely fashion and dog hair haunts my every project. If you find one on my art be careful to remove it… it might be attached :)
Between art projects I can usually be found skiing, skijoring with lazy mutt, hiking, running or floating in some water somewhere. In addition to my birch bark art I also sketch, illustrate and sometimes paint.
Notable Events
Friends of Creamers Field Summer Arts Walk 2015, 2016, 2017
Friends of Alaska Wildlife Refuges Art in The Arctic 2017, 2018
Special Projects
Ivory Quest Sweatshirt Design 2016
"Rhinocerous Breakfast" Childrens book illustraitions 2017